168, Busy (6 updates)
She was a girl with great ideas and skills, and it made no sense for her to be confined to the inner chambers or to have her wings clipped, unable to soar high.
Xie Zhinuan believed that Li Hengyi did not understand business, but she still wanted to discuss with him how to spend the fifty thousand taels of silver.
The first step was to hire a Mr. Accountant, and also to recruit some people.
These people could not be hired at random, since they would be going out to buy Jiji Grass, they had to be trustworthy, or she could spread out the business to allow more people to earn the silver.
Xie Zhinuan chose the latter.
She believed that as long as Jiji Grass could be sold for silver, surely next year people would plant it.
This would also stimulate the economy of Dazhou, giving many people the opportunity to earn money while the silver circulated.
Xie Zhinuan explained to Li Hengyi all the benefits, and slowly, Li Hengyi started to sit up straight.
Even without the involvement of the imperial court, he was still the Prince of Dazhou, with a heart for all his subjects.
When Dazhou was strong, the neighboring nations would not dare to covet and harass it. Without conflict, the people at the Frontier Pass would not live such miserable lives.
After listening to Xie Zhinuan, he realized that he had underestimated her; this girl knew far more than he had imagined.
Although some of her strategies were concisely made, they enlightened him greatly and instantly sparked even more thoughts.
As Xie Zhinuan spoke until her mouth was dry and her tongue was parched, Li Hengyi softly began to speak, suppressing his excitement and joy, “They say that listening to you is better than reading ten years of books, and indeed, the saying is true. Miss Xie, if you are willing, please discuss more of these beneficial ideas for the country and people with me. If you wish for your name to be known far and wide, I will help spread it for you, but if you are not interested…”
“No need, Li Gongzi. As long as you know about these ideas, there’s no need to tell others. These are my words!”
As a weak woman, knowing too much could bring doubt upon her.
Towards Li Hengyi, she had never been overly cautious from the beginning, always feeling that he was a gentleman who would not harm her.
There had been misunderstandings in the past, but they had cleared up over time, which was also a reason she was willing to speak more.
“Then I won’t speak of it. Yuanbao told me you’re learning to read and write. If you don’t mind, you can come to me with any words you don’t understand or recognize. I have a small study here with some books that are abstruse and difficult to comprehend. I will have someone collect some books suitable for beginners for you to look at!”
A woman without talent is a virtue; this is something only narrow-minded men would say.
A truly broad-minded man desires the women by his side to be well-versed in literature and art so that they can converse compatibly, not talk past each other like chickens and ducks, or play the lute to a cow.
“Good!”
Xie Zhinuan accepted this benefit.
Of course, she put a lot more effort into the meals for Li Hengyi.
Although the quantity was still limited, she added a few more dishes, varying the creations with the items Yuanbao delivered.
Li Hengyi came to understand one thing, Xie Zhinuan needed to be coaxed and offered incentives; she did not respond to force, only to gentle persuasion.
Xie Zhinuan was extremely busy these days, occupied with recruiting people to purchase Jiji Grass. She couldn’t just hire anyone; she needed guarantors, lest someone took the silver and ran off, leaving her with no one to track down.
These guarantors had to be reputable figures in town, and in just a few days, her reputation in Chonghe Town had grown considerably.
A braised meat shop that did so well it drew envy, and now she was collecting Jiji Grass-for what purpose no one yet knew-but there were plenty selling it to her.
Villagers from various villages harvested and cleaned it, bringing it to Xiaohe Village.
Xie Zhinuan selected a few women from the village to help wash and dry the Jiji Grass, providing them with jobs as well.
Chapter 170